a sweet dream and a beautiful nightmare
by Laurie Juspeczyk
Summary: "Do you ever dream?" "Hai. Everyone dreams." "But when in a dream, you know you re dreaming. And when awake, you know that for sure, too. Am I right?" "Hai" His eyes never left mine while i was whispering the words. "See, I don t know that anymore. this could be a dream. Or it could be reality. And I don t know anymore, what I actually want it to be."
1. Chapter 1

These are some drabbles i wrote, planning to make a crossover last samurai / inception. let´s see if anyone likes to read... :) greetings from south germany.

My eyes drifted close the moment my head hit the soft, silken pillow and the thought crazed my mind that I had never experienced anything as luxury as the cool fabric against my heated, still damp cheek. One last time my eyes opened and found the dark brown, nearly black orbs of his. His lazy, halfway-grin was still vivid on my mind, when I fell into a peaceful slumber, his arms wrapped around my smaller frame, reassuring and safe.

Reality faded and the dream enfolded itself in front of my inner eye. Slowly, piece by piece a complex, vivid picture arose.

I felt the moist, cool forest floor under my bare feet, fallen leaves and cedar needles were tickling my between my toes. I looked down, closely reckoning my feet, wiggling my toes. The dark-crimson nail polish seemed oddly out of space. I wrinkled my nose. Why were the polish and my knee length roman style summer dress I was wearing so unbearable misplaced? More so, why did my whole _presence_ felt so wrong?

Totally lost in thought I stood there, amidst a foreign clearing, surrounded by thick scrub and lofty trees. The chill air made me shiver and the rich, dark scent of the forest soil lingers in it.

The peaceful tranquility evaded and a constantly growing louder voice was to hear. At first, I did not even take notice of it; my mind was way too occupied by the strange surroundings. But the voice grew louder and louder and no coherent thought was able no more.

I dropped to my knees involuntary, irregardless the damp forest floor. I pressed my hands flat against my ears, trying to avoid the terrifying sound. The world around me began to spin faster and faster until I felt nausea upwelling.

A warm, metallic scent lingers in the air, and one don´t has to be a rocket scientist to recognize the smell of blood. For a short moment my eyes shut close and when they opened again, the setting had changed dramatically.

An archaic fight was ravaging around me, roaring yells of fighting men were to hear. Solders in bloodstained uniforms and with deathly pale faces were fighting grimly against a smaller, but obviously superior group of men. These were not wearing uniforms. Instead, they wore some kind of armor, each of them different in endearment and color; but similar menacing and overpowering.

A shriek escaped my mouth when I saw two uniformed soldiers went down to my left. Their faces pale, lips drawn from blood and the eyes dead and empty. It was no merciful death they had met. I recognized that all the uniformed men on the battlefield were from Japanese lineage, only the ones with the horrifying armors were impossible to identify, the mighty helmets and visors only showed the eyes.

More and more men went down to my left and right, I closed my eyes to avoid the gruesome sight. I needed to think clear for at least a single moment. A quiet voice in my mind told me, that this was mere a dream, not more. Nothing could harm me in my dream.

But this felt real. Terribly real. It even _smelled_ real.

Finally I opened my eyes again, no longer able to shut out the sounds of war and death around me. I remembered something I once had red: the most gruesome thing about war was the sound. It was true.

My eyes fluttered open just in time to watch a tall figure approaching me through the mist. The man moved slowly, without haste and not paying attention to the bodies at his feet. My body denied any service and for the first time in my life I was not able to move at all. Incapable of drawing back I knelt there on the damp, dark soil. The warrior towered over me and considering my crouching position I was unable to estimate how tall he was, but he had to be at least 6 feet or taller. He, too, was wearing one of that archaic looking armors, his was deep black with skillful, golden endearments.

The warrior took the last to steps between us and i was able to catch a glimpse of his breastplate, zje pauldrons and the braces on his forearms, which shows golden, fighting tigers. His helmet was even more awe-inspiring compared to his companions´. An old, Japanese demon of some sorts was cresting it, made of a deep black metal. A broad, massive visor concealed his face and only his eyes were to see, their color was a dark brown, almost similar to the black, rich soil of the forest ground under my naked knees.

Unconsciously I had shifted my weight back onto my heels, so i was know in a very upright, kneeling position, like a traditional Japanese women would kneel. My hands were luckily resting on my thighs, so he could not detect the trembling of my numb fingers.

I held his gaze, not batting an eye, and the world around me was lost in reverie

„Osoreru koto wa arimasen " his voice was rich, deep and melodic, but the words did not sink in for several seconds. The sound was soothing and familiar, like a long lost memory.

„Anata dare?" i could sense mor then hear that his words were a question, and I desperately wished to understand. Tears streamed down my pale cheeks but I did not understand why I was so devastated.

„Watashitoisshoni taizai!" His urging, almost begging words were still repeating over and over again in my mind, when I had woken up seconds later in my bed, covered in cold sweat and drowned in tears.

(I have to apologize for any miss-spellings or grammar-errors, for i am from germany and english is not my ntive tongue)

Please, for the gods sake, reviews delight a writers heart! :)

Osoreru koto wa arimasen don´t be afraid

Anata dare who are you?

Watashitoisshoni taizai stay with me


	2. Chapter 2

„Watashitoisshoni taizai!"

Even in my dream his voice made me moan longingly. His begging words, the seducing, gentle sound of it, fuelled my desperate wish to answer him, to found my own voice again.

Ever since that first night here in Japan, I dreamt about this strange samurai almost every single night. I heard his raspy, deep murmur each single time I closed my eyes, not matter how tired or exhausted I was, he always came to me, took me with him, far away.

This night, I found myself in a traditional, Japanese house, I marveled on the wonderful paper-made walls, the very few but beautiful drawings on the thin walls. My feet started to walk on their own account; it seemed I had no saying in the directions they took me. I wandered down a small, dark hallway, but somehow it wasn´t threatening at all, actually it had has a very soothing effect on me. My breathing got steadier with every step and I was totally calm. To my right, a door slid open and I stepped inside the dimly light room. Candles were burning and spending a warm light, I raised my eyes from the floor under my bare feet and I stood still in awe. Before me, only a few steps away, his armor stood on a dress-form. I would have recognized it out of hundreds, simply because I had seen it in almost every dream so far. The light of the candles was reflected by the polished black and golden metal, even the fabric of the undershirts seemed to gleam. The highly impressive but also stunningly beautiful helmet sat on top. Carefully I closed the small distance and stood still right in front of the armor. It was huge, most likely one and a half heads taller than me, and good as twice as broad. My hand rose by itself and my fingertips caressed the delicate golden endearments, touched the tigers, engraved into the breast plate and the bracers. To my surprise it felt warm under my skin, almost alive. I leaned forward, taking in the scent that emanated from it. The scent reminded me of the warm, earthy smell of the forest floor, matching the dark brown, earthy color of his eyes.

These eyes. They were haunting me. Even in my wake hours. They had this warm glow, and one could easily imagine how they would darken to nearly black when enraged or in ecstasy. Gods, the mere thought of it made me shiver. I wanted to get lost in those eyes. I wanted to lose myself in this voice. It was hilarious, I told myself every morning. It was only a dream, after all.

The sudden voice of footsteps startled me and I stepped back from the armor. Turning around I could see the form of a tall man through the thin paper walls, walking down the hallway and stopping in front of the sliding door. Like in slow motion the door opened to the side, and for first time in all my dreams he stood there, without the armor, wearing a simple, but handsome dark blue kimono and a matching hakama. He was as tall as I had thought, even a bit taller. That was very rare among Japanese man, even more because his frame also seemed to be remarkable broad and athletic. Where the Kimono fell open at his elegant neck his skin shows, tanned but seemingly smooth. My heart took a leap when I got a glimpse of his elegant collarbone.

He stepped inside the room while his eyes never left mine. He wasn´t surprised at all to see me, more likely he seemed to be pleased yet _relieved_. His eyes shone in the soft candle light, their color looking almost black and a slight smile played around his firm lips. He took one step after another until he stood right in front of me. I had to crane my neck backwards to be able to see his face.

He looked stunningly impressive; his obviously black hair shaved short, a neatly trimmed beard shading the skin around his nicely shaped lips and angular chin. I saw the muscles at his jaw twitch a bit as he opened his lips as if he wanted to address me, but no word came out at first.

"Soko ni aru Watashi wa nagai jikan o matteita"

This time my dream did not end the very moment he spoke to me. This time I was able to make a small motion and my face showed my confusion of what his words mean.

"There you are. I waited so long." He left me breathless with these words, spoken in my own language. How could this be? His smile widened as he watched me. I was in pure shock and my legs quit their job right then. I sensed my weakness and the very moment I started to fall he closed the last bit of distance between us and catched me in mid air, holding me secure in his arms. I felt the warmth emanating from his body, felt the strength of this experienced warrior. The last thing I remembered was his masculine and stern but so very handsome face and the longing look in his eyes.

Then I slowly drifted back into reality and with a start I woke up.


	3. Chapter 3

Another night, another dream, a different location, but the same soothing, calming whispers in the air.

I found myself in some kind of courtyard, standing in the pouring rain. The drops were falling heavy on my shoulders, soaking me from head to heel in mere seconds. I didn´t felt neither the cold nor my damp clothes. I looked down my body and recognized the dark green kimono I had seen in a traditional shop in Tokyo a few days ago. It was beautiful and the color was a perfect match for my copper-red, hair. It was quite expensive, so I had not been able to make the decision to buy it.

But now, in this dream, I was wearing it. The wet fabric felt so vivid on my skin, I had to remember myself that I was still only dreaming.

My eyes wandered around and I took in my surroundings. It was indeed a courtyard, well groomed, with neatly cut, evergreen bushes and bald trees. So it was winter, I thought suddenly. The heavy rain continued and it made it impossible to see further then the distance to the surrounding buildings. I walked over to the closest, an open hallway, open stone arches facing the yard. Carefully to not slip on the stone floor I stepped under the roof, sighing deeply, relieved to have found any kind of shelter from the rain. Slowly I began to stroll further into the hallway, surprised by the lack of wind or coolness inside. Stepping around a corner, I discovered what clearly some kind of shrine was, joss-sticks and candles were burning, and I was able to smell the spicy, smoky scent lingering in the air.

"Okaerinasai"

My eyes drifted close for seconds, relishing on the sound of his voice. When they opened again, I slowly turned around, sensing his presence right behind me. I smiled apologetically.

He seemed to remember my lack of knowledge of his language, so he repeated himself, speaking English this time.

"Welcome home."

Home? How could this be home? I was utterly confused, but his closeness brought my attention back to my current surroundings . He smiled his ever slight halfway smile and raised his right hand to my face, stroking back a silken strand of copper hair, which escaped my neat bun. His Fingertips lingered on the nape of my neck. The smile on his handsome face turned into a lazy grin and his dark eyes became a tad softer

"akaebikusen"

I raised my eyebrows in an unspoken question.

"Red vixen…" His grin deepened as an airy laugh escaped my lips. This term of endearment seemed most fitting yet so strange, that i was matching this dream just perfectly.


End file.
